Arcade Cabinet Help
So I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask the question here so I appologiez in advance.
Long story short, I am thinking about building a MAME cabinet and I want to know what is the average price for ususally buying a broken machine? Is it ususally better to gut out a broken machine or to just build it myself? And if so, are there any good guides and measurements on building the cabinet itself? Thanks in advance!
Long story short, I am thinking about building a MAME cabinet and I want to know what is the average price for ususally buying a broken machine? Is it ususally better to gut out a broken machine or to just build it myself? And if so, are there any good guides and measurements on building the cabinet itself? Thanks in advance!
Comments
http://www.arcadecab.com/Intro.htm
Here is a really nice video that will give you some background on what you're in for. Both the Raspberry Pi and the RetroPie image have come a long way since this video was made, but you'll get the gist of it...and you don't have to do LED buttons.
https://youtu.be/RcsKNryPAzw
Also here are plans for a nice table top design.
http://www.retrobuiltgames.com/the-build-page/diy-minicade-free-plans/
I picked up and old x-men children of the atom cab up about 3 months ago for $100 and that was after searching craigslist for about a week. It didn't have a board or monitor but it was perfect for the mame project I was working on. If you live in a bigger city there is a good chance you'll be able to find one relatively cheap as well if you just put in some leg work
Sadly, I live in a one-horse town. Don't know many people arround here who even have arcades. I wouldn't even mind taking a drive all the way to somewhere in NC for a cabinet.
There are two sets of plans here that will point you in the right direction.
http://www.arcadecab.com/Intro.htm
Here is a really nice video that will give you some background on what you're in for. Both the Raspberry Pi and the RetroPie image have come a long way since this video was made, but you'll get the gist of it...and you don't have to do LED buttons.
http://www.retrobuiltgames.com/the-build-page/diy-minicade-f...
Yeahhhh, I had a Rasp Pi laying arround orriginally for emulation...but I figured out how to dump roms onto my Retron 5 so I mainly just want it to be a MAME cabinate.
Dont know where you are in SC but there is a guy in downtown Rock Hill that rebuilds old cabs. He may be able to help you out. His store is called Joes Video Games. The owner of Save Point in Charlotte could probably help too. He has a few cabs in his store that he has rebuilt. Hes also a member here.
Joes is FULL of arcade cabinets.
Well like another member stated, the beauty of this project is that you can make it your own. I am curious as to how you plan on wiring up the Retron 5 to the cabinet and what specific features won out over the Raspberry Pi as the brain of your project.
Find a empty cab, don't pay more than 50 to 100 bucks, don't MAME a classic or god will kill a kitten. I've been fixing and working on Arcades for over 10 years.
Yeahhh, I just got an empty one from some guy locally anyway. Hell, if I found a classic arcade, I would find a way to restore the shit out of it.
Well like another member stated, the beauty of this project is that you can make it your own. I am curious as to how you plan on wiring up the Retron 5 to the cabinet and what specific features won out over the Raspberry Pi as the brain of your project.
Well, no, you misunderstand. I would use my retron 5 on my TV for all home-based retro consoles. I will be using the Rasp Pi to make it mainly emulating the arcade games such as Gauntlet, Ms. Pac-Man, Galaga, TMNT, etc.
Ahh I see, that makes more sense. I have a few Pi's laying around, one of them will end up in a cabinet...but I'll prob have it do a little of everything. Good luck on your project and please keep us posted, I'd love to follow your progress.
sure thing man, I'll probably start on it this weekend and I'll make a topic when I start on it.